Sample Congregational Prayer Guide

“The success of any other effort or ministry in the church is directly connected to your fervent successful praying.” – James Walker, Senior Pastor

CONFESSION AND REPENTANCE
“You are forgiving and good, O Lord, abounding in love to all who call to you. Hear my prayer, O Lord; listen to my cry for mercy.” (Psalm 86:5-6)
Father, we bow in praise and worship before Your throne of grace as we come in confession and repentance, seeking Your forgiveness for the sin in our lives. We confess our sin of unrighteousness – the sin of unfaithfulness, rebellion and compromise.
We acknowledge that we are nothing without You and we ask for Your forgiveness and cleansing. Father, we yield ourselves to You and ask that You clothe us with Your righteousness. We acknowledge You as Almighty, Sovereign, Holy God and we desire to be salt and light for use in Your Kingdom.
Help us to serve you without selfish ambitions, and may we remember that all of our work in Your name is for Your Kingdom purposes and Your glory alone. We praise You for Your faithfulness to us and thank You for Your wisdom and direction in our lives. You alone are worthy of our praise.

OUR WARFARE
Father, thank You for Your provision as we go into battle against the enemy. By Your power You have defeated the enemy and we choose to stand ready to resist his strategies. May our motivation remain pure and our attention only given to Godly ambition. Help us to stand firm as we clothe ourselves with the armor you have provided:
• The Helmet of Salvation,
• The Breastplate of Righteousness,
• The Belt of Truth,
• The Shield of Faith,
• The Sandals of peace, and
• The Sword of the Spirit – Your Word.
Father, show us where the enemy is waiting to tempt us or cause us to fall – in our personal lives, in our family, in the workplace, and in the church.
May we honor and glorify You with pure lives as the body of Christ at Biltmore. How awesome is Your name, O Lord most high.
Open the eyes of our hearts so that we may know You better. Because of Your great love and mercy for us through the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, we take our place with You in the heavenly realms.
Saturate Biltmore Baptist Church with Your presence, Lord Jesus, and may You alone be honored and exalted in every ministry and activity; we will give you all praise when people marvel at the works of Your hands.

A PRAYING CHURCH
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:1-3)
Father, may our only desire be to please You. With wisdom and grace, cause our hearts to focus on You, and help us to stay alert and keep on praying for all the saints.
Father, bind the enemy’s strategies and place a protective hedge around the Biltmore Baptist Church campus.
Guard our hearts, O God, and remove anyone who might hinder or stand against Your desire and ministry for this church. May the harmony and support of the Biltmore family bring honor to Your Name.
Grant us wisdom and discernment, and the knowledge to understand Your Kingdom purpose as Biltmore begins the Strategic Planning Process. We ask for Your will and direction in every decision, and grant us the grace to walk in step with You – not too fast or too slow. Take us beyond the physical things, and establish us in Your love.
We acknowledge that we are nothing without You, but with You great things can be accomplished for Your Kingdom.
Holy Father, we acknowledge You as our great Creator God, and recognize You as THE ultimate authority. Strengthen President Bush and our national, state, and local leaders to lead with truth and integrity, and surround them with wise counsel.

A REACHING CHURCH
“May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish the work of our hands for us—yes, establish the work of our hands.” (Psalm 90:17)
Father, may we be faithful to carry out the instruction You have given us through Your Word, to go into Western North Carolina and all the world with the Gospel message of Jesus Christ.
We pray that You will continue to provide additional staff for the growth of ministry and outreach at Biltmore according to Your plan and purpose.
Father, use the Café on the Rock to expand Your Kingdom and bring honor and glory to Your Name.
Father, as You call them out, may Mission Teams throughout the year take the love of Jesus all over the world, and men, women, boys and girls, be ready and willing to surrender to full time or part time ministry.
Bring people into Biltmore by Your design and plan and help us to accomplish Your Kingdom purpose. May we understand Your love for us while we seek to follow Your will.
We pray for Your wisdom and discernment for the leadership as they seek Your perfect will for future growth and Phase III direction for Biltmore.

AN EQUIPPING CHURCH
Show us your ways, O Lord, teach us your paths, guide us in your truth and teach us, for you are God our Savior, and our hope is in you all day long.” (Psalm 25:4-5)
Father, we acknowledge You as the equipper of the saints, to Your glory alone. You are worthy of our complete devotion and service.
May we be filled with Your Spirit, and may lives be changed as Your Word is shared and taught from the pulpit and throughout this campus.
May the love You showed us through our Lord Jesus Christ be the foundation of the teaching in our Bible Fellowship Groups at Biltmore; give wisdom and discernment to our teachers as they reflect Your love.
Father, reveal Your love and purpose for each life through Life University and Singles @ The Well; and may Your glory abound as people are drawn into a closer, more intimate walk with You.
Father, may Your name be exalted throughout our Children and Youth areas of ministry; raise up our children and youth to honor and glorify You with their lives.

A MINISTRY CHURCH
Keep on loving each other as brothers. (Hebrews 13:1)
Father, we acknowledge You as the giver of all good things, including our material possessions. May our tithe of time and money be only the beginning of our complete surrender and obedience to You. Give us willing hearts to use all that we are and have to enlarge Your kingdom on earth.
Cover this campus with Your Spirit, Father, so future generations may know of Your greatness. May all who come behind us find us faithful in the way we spend Your resources today and give us wisdom to know how to leave resources for future generations through the Light Foundation.
Equip and enable our deacons as they honor You in ministry to the families at Biltmore.
As children and families are drawn to Biltmore through our Sports Outreach programs, may You be honored and glorified in their lives.
May men and women surrender their lives to Your purpose through Celebrate Recovery and other ministries provided through HOPE Network, as the love of the Lord Jesus Christ is proclaimed.
Father, may You be honored and acknowledged through the gifts and talents You have given Your children as they find their area of service through PLACE Ministry.
As we abide in You may our ministry of serving others reflect Your love and compassion, and draw more people to follow and serve You.

A WORSHIPING CHURCH
“Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song.” (Psalm 95:1-2 )
As the body of Christ at Biltmore gathers for worship, may You be exalted, Lord Jesus. May our hearts be pure and open as the Holy Spirit is given free reign to bring all our focus on You.
As worship leaders, may the choir, praise teams and orchestra be used as clean vessels to bring honor and glory to Your Name.
Father, we praise You for the people who made life changing decisions during Carolina Mountain Christmas. May every worship service at Biltmore encourage people to seek and follow You, Lord Jesus.
Father, as we enter Your throne room with thanksgiving and praise, may our only desire be to encounter You and please You with all our heart.
As a spiritual act of worship, and in obedience, we offer our bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to You, O God. May our lifestyles reflect our obedience and worship.

JERUSALEM
ABCCM: Asheville Buncombe Community Christian Ministries
Dr. Craig Bailey: Dir. Of Missions-Buncombe Baptist Association
Vic and Vicki Howard: WNC Rescue Ministries/Martha Home/Samaritan Shoppe
Carter & Ronda Pounders: the body in downtown Asheville
Deb Wood/Jill Derrick/Joyce Wilson: Asheville Pregnancy Center

JUDEA
Heath Davis and staff: Pinnacle Church, Canton, NC
Ron and Mimi Pownall: EQUIP, Marion, NC
Randy Shepherd and Jamie Johnson: Crossfire Ministries

SAMARIA
Randy and Ronda Corn: Disaster Relief, North American Mission Board

ENDS OF THE EARTH
Bob & JoAnn Burdette: Africa
Ceci: Central Asia
Jim and Joy Danielson: Canada
David Phelan: Institute of Biblical Leadership - leadership training for pastors (underground) in a closed country...

OUR STAFF
“Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.” (Psalm 91:14)
Father, guide the staff in paths of righteousness for Your name sake. Give them strong hearts for holiness and purity as they lead Your people at Biltmore. Enable them to work in harmony and unity according to Your will for their ministries, and help them stay alert to the strategies of the enemy that would distract them.
Father, may the staff be reflectors of Your love and may Your faithfulness provide a shield from harm, as they find refuge under the shelter of Your wings.

OUR MISSIONARIES
“Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” ( 1 Corinthians 15:58 )
Father, this is our prayer for our missionaries – the people You have called out to serve You around the world. We pray that You will be their strength and shield. Hide them in the shelter of your presence and keep them safe from the evil one. Give them the desires of their heart as they delight in You. (Psalm 37:4)

And now we lift before Your throne these serving in our Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the Ends of the Earth:
Add your local missionaries to this section ~ Add your foreign “called out ”missionaries to this section

LEADERSHIP AND VISION CASTING
James I. Walker, Senior Pastor
Jane McConnell, Executive Assistant
WORSHIP TEAM
Carl Setterlind, Pastor of Exalt Ministries...
EQUIPPING TEAM
Ryland Whitehorn, Pastor of Education...
REACHING TEAM
Mike McKee, Pastor of Missions and Evangelism...
PRAYING/MINISTRY TEAMS
Carl Toth, Associate Pastor
Carolyn Fuqua, Prayer Ministry Coordinator
Dot Smith, Prayer Ministry Assistant...
SUPPORTING/SERVING TEAM
Ron Setran, Business Administrator...